Pick-up cover

ABSTRACT

A sandwich panel multi-sided structure mountable on a vehicle body, as a pick-up truck or trailer. The structure is formed from a single flat sandwich panel comprising a bendable sheet metal facing and a rigid plywood facing bonded to opposite sides of a plastic foam core. The core is a compressible expanded polystyrene foam. The panel is provided with spaced pairs of transverse grooves extended through the rigid plywood facing toward the bendable metal facing. The grooves are along the corner sections and divide the panel into a roof section and opposite side sections. The side sections have openings for receiving window structures. The structure is formed by bending the sheet metal facing and compressing the core along the corner sections to form a roof converging outwardly and downwardly from a longitudinal ridge and upright side walls. The back of the pick-up cover is closed with an end wall having a door.

United States Patent 1191 Bainter et al.

1 PICK-UP COVER [75] Inventors: Huston K. Bainter; Marvin E.

Nerem, both of Forest City, Iowa [73] Assignee: Winnebago Industries,Inc., Forest City, Iowa [22] Filed: June 3, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 149,747

Related US. Application Data [60] Division of Ser. No. 15,602, March 2,1970, abandoned, which is a continuation-impart of Ser. No. 777,934,Sept. 9, 1968, abandoned.

[52] US. Cl. 52/79; 52/86; 52/90; 52/309; 52/631; 52/753 H [51] Int. Cl.E04 1/12; F04C 2/24 [58] Field of Search 52/238, 631, 731, 309, 52/69,79, 86, 90, 753 H; 296/23 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS1,440,615 1/1923 Meyercord 52/631 1,479,474 1/1924 Meyercord... 52/2381,734,209 11/1929 Huffinc 138/149 1,819,345 8/1931 Thurman 52/2591,874,922 8/1932 Delaney... 161/106 1,881,734 10/1932 Lewis 52/6312,149,882 3/1939 Clements 52/631 2,155,969 4/1939 Green 52/631 2,181,16411/1939 Alexander... 52/631 2,458,925 1/1949 Barger 52/631 2,505,7895/1950 Norquist 1 1 52/631 2,557,412 6/1951 Clements 52/631 2,627,9492/1953 Willson 1 52/86 2,848,274 8/1958 Geisler et a1. 296/102 3,088,5585/1963 Dickinson 52/86 1451 Sept. 9, 1975 Primary ExaminerFrank L.Abbott Assistant Examiner-L. A. Braun [57] ABSTRACT A sandwich panelmulti-sided structure mountable on a vehicle body, as a pick-up truck ortrailer. The structure is formed from a single flat sandwich panelcomprising a bendable sheet metal facing and a rigid plywood facingbonded to opposite sides of a plastic foam core. The core is acompressible expanded polystyrene foam. The panel is provided withspaced pairs of transverse grooves extended through the rigid plywoodfacing toward the bendable metal facing. The grooves are along thecorner sections and divide the panel into a roof section and oppositeside sections. The side sections have openings for receiving windowstructures. The structure is formed by bending the sheet metal facingand compressing the core along the corner sections to form a roofconverging outwardly and downwardly from a longitudinal ridge andupright side walls. The back of the pick-up cover is closed with an endwall having a door.

6 Claims, 11 Drawing Figures PATENIED 91975 3.903.663

sum 1 9 1 INVFNTORS HUSTON K. BAINTER BY MARVIN E. NEREMfiwmjfi/mddogafiag PATENTED SEP 9 I975 A INVENTORS HUSTON K. BAINTER BYMARVIN E. NEREM PATENTED 9W5 3.903.663

SHEET u n; 4

JNVENTORS HUSTON K. BAlNTER BY MARVIN E. NEREM AT TORNI YQ PICK-UP COVERCROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a divisionof U.S. application Ser. No. 015,602 filed Mar. 2, 1970, now abandoned.U.S. application Ser. No. 173,234 filed Aug. 19, 1971 is a continuationof application Ser. No. 015,602. Application Ser. No. 015,602 is acontinuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 777,934 filed Sept. 9,1968, now abandoned. Application, Ser. No. 777,934 is a continuation ofU.S. application, Ser. No. 536,058, filed Mar. 21, 1966, now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Numerous types of structures have beenfabricated to enclose tops of vehicle bodies. These structures areeither fabricated at the site of mounting the structures on the vehiclebody or are prefabricated into multi-sided structures and shipped to anassembly location. The fabrication of the multi-sided structures at theplace of installation does not utilize mass production techniques tomanufacture the structures. Completing the multisided structures at amanufacturing location and then shipping the structures to the points ofdistribution is not an economical transportation procedure, as themulti-sided structures utilize considerable transport space. Also, onlya limited number of structures can be shipped in a single load. Anexample of this type of covering structure or top for a truck body isshown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,848,274.

Collapsible or knockdown structures have been used in the constructionof vehicle body covers. These structures have panels that are connectedto each other to form the complete cover. These panels require separateconnecting structures and seals to hold the panels in assembled relationwith each other. Examples of these types of pick-up covers are shown inU.S. Pat. No. 2,690,351 and No. 3,219,383.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION The invention relates to a multi-sided structure orcover adapted to be mounted on the body of a pick-up truck. The coverhas generally upright side wall sections and a center or roof sectionconnected to the side wall sections with corner sections. All of thesections of the structure are formed from a single sandwich panel havinga pliable outer facing and an inner rigid facing bonded to oppositesides of an expanded, compressible, plastic foam core. The longitudinalcorner sections have both an outer pliable facing and core integrallyjoined with the outer facing and core of both the roof section and sidewall sections.

In one form of the invention, the corner sections have closedlongitudinal V-groove means in the inner facing and core separating theside wall sections from the roof section. The bottom of each V-groovemeans is spaced from the pliable outer facing, whereby the core in thecorner section is continuous with the core of the roof section and sidewall sections. The pliable outer facing, along with the core in thecorner sections, has longitudinal bend portions generally parallel tothe longitudinal V-groove means. The plastic foam core in the cornersections is bonded to the outer facing and compressed, therebyreinforcing the comer sections. The roof section has an upwardlydirected longitudinal ridge, whereby the roof section converges upwardlyfrom the corner sections.

In another form of the invention, the pick-up cover has a one-piecesandwich construction panel having generally upright side wall sections,a roof section, and longitudinal comer sections joined to the side wallsections with the roof section. The sandwich panel has a pliable outerfacing and a plurality of inner rigid facings bonded to opposite sidesof an expanded, compressible, plastic foam core. The inner rigid facingsare separated from each other along the corner sections, whereby thepanel has shallow spaces or grooves on the inside of the panel. Thesespaces are parallel to the longitudinal corner sections of the cover.The corner sections of the cover have a bent or curved pliable outerfacing and a compressed core bonded to the curved portion of the outerfacing.

An object of the invention is to provide a multi-sided structure whichcan be manufactured from panels that are shipped as single flat piecesin relatively large quantities and can be quickly and easily assembledinto a finished cover with a minimum of time and labor. A further objectof the invention is to provide the pick-up cover with a sandwich panelstructure which has a longitudinal ridge or crown to compensate forchanges in temperature without separating the outer skin from the foamplastic core or buckling the roof section. Also, another feature of theinvention is to provide a pick-up cover that has reinforced longitudinalcorner sections having an uninterrupted outer skin and compressed foamplastic core bonded to the outer skin. An additional feature of theinvention is to provide the pick-up cover with strength andthermo-insulating characteristics.

IN THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a pick-up truck shown inlight lines with a multi-sided hollow structure of this inventionmounted thereon;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of a sandwich panel cut and grooved but not formedand is drawn to the same scale as FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 44of FIG. 3 and is drawn to an even larger scale than FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a different form of panel that has been both grooved and cutto produce a five-sided hollow device and drawn to substantially thesame scale as FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the blank in FIG. 5 formed into itsultimate shape;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a cover of the invention mounted on thebody of a pick-up truck;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 88 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged sectional view of a corner section of the cover;

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a sandwich panel in its preformed flattransport position; and

FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along the line 11-11 of FIG. 10.

Referring to the drawings, a practical use to which this invention maybe put is in making what are known as covers and campers for trucks ofthe pick-up type such as shown at 10 in FIG. 1. Both sides, such as theone 11, and the roof of the cover or camper are constructed from a blankformed according to this invention. The end member 12 and a second endmember fit ting in the opposite end of the cover adjacent the cab oftruck complete the structure.

The portion of the cover including side 11, as shown in FIG. 3, is madeflat in a single piece. Ends 12 and its counterpart, also being flat,enable the entire device to be shipped in a knockdown condition in aspace no larger than two of the elements shown in FIG. 3 before it isbent into shape. At an ultimate destination, there is very littleproblem in bending the element, shown in FIG. 3, and assembling it tothe two ends, such as the one 12 which makes the unit ready to beinstalled on a truck.

As is best seen in FIG. 4, the sandwich panel from which the elements ofthis invention are made comprises a core member, as shown at 14, securedto facing members 17 and 18. Bonding materials 15 and 16 may be similaror dissimilar to each other depending on a number of factors, such asthe materials to be bonded and perhaps the use to which the panel willbe put. At least one of the facing members, shown in FIG. 4 as facingmember 17, must be pliable. That is to say, it must be material that iscapable of being bent without fracturing. A specific example of anacceptable combination for a particular function is illustrated in FIGS.1 to 4 as being a sandwich panel having a foam polystyrene core 14 witha first facing 18 of plywood and a second facing 17 of metal, asaluminumv The panel shown in FIG. 3 is as wide as the structure shown ontruck 10 in FIG. 1 is long. This panel is grooved, as shown at 19 inFIG. 4, the grooves extending transversely across the panel, as shown at19 in FIG. 3. The broken lines represent the inserts of wood that may beinserted at the edges of the panel. As for example, at 20 there may be arailing of wood which would have a corresponding member 21 on theopposite side of the panel, shown in FIG. 3, to assist in securing thecover to the truck body. At each longitudinal edge are portions wherethe polystyrene core 14 has been cut back in order to leave a marginaledge 23 and 24 of uncovered sandwich panel facing 17.

The openings, shown at 25 and 26, may be used to install windows such asthe ones shown at 27 in the member 11 of FIG. 1.

The grooves 19 divide the entire panel into a series of sections,including a center section 22, which are coupled together at least bythe pliable facing 17. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, a portion of thepolystyrene or other core materials of the sandwich panel may alsocontinue to link the sections after grooving.

Panel 12 may be provided with an opening closed with a door such as theone shown at 28. The panel 12 also may be of a different elevationhaving one or more top portions with the top center, as shown at 29,being slightly higher than any other portions of the panel. The endmember, adjacent to the cab of the truck 10, may be similarly formed inorder to bend the top center of portion 11 or center section 22 into asort of ridge pole effect. In other words, the center section 22converges outwardly to the longitudinal ridge 29 which extends parallelto the closed V-grooves, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. This bending of theroof may alter both the appearance and the water sheddingcharacteristics of the structure. It also tends to provide more rigidityto the otherwise completely flat roof portion of the portion 11.

The manner in which member 12 and member 11 are secured together is notof patentable importance and is not shown in detail, since it may bedone in any one of a number of ways. Illustrated here, for example, theflap edges 23 and 24 may be used to secure the panel 12 and itscorresponding opposite panel adjacent the cab to the portion 11, asshown in FIG. 1.

In FIG. 5, it may be seen a panel generally similar to that shown inFIGS. 2, 3 and 4. The specific difference in this species resides in thefact that the panel has not only been grooved, as shown at 30, but ithas also been cut, as seen at 31, whereby when force is applied to thevarious sections of the panel, illustrated in FIG. 5, it may assume theconfiguration shown in FIG. 6. In this manner, center 32 of the panel,shown in FIG. 5, is surrounded by a series of wings designated 34through 37 in a clockwise direction around the center panel 32 andbeginning at the right thereof. The broken lines in the figure, at 38for example, mark out areas where the foam polystyrene or other corematerial of the paneling is replaced by a material that has greatertensile strength, as wood for example, for purposes of attach inghardware, such as hinges and the like, to the structure. When force isapplied to the various wings 34, 35, 36 and 37, they may be bent withrespect to the center panel 32 to form the multi-sided figure shown inFIG. 6. In this case, the panel is being used as a cover for the twowheeled trailer 40. As can be seen in FIG. 5, each of the openings orcuts 31 is bordered by uncovered edges or flanges of facing material. Ineach case, the pliable facing of the sandwich panel has been bared toleave flanges for attaching tabs 39 of the uncovered pliable sandwichboard facing. These tabs are used in forming the corners of themulti-sided structure shown in FIG. 6. A cover member 32-35 may behinged at either side or either end to the trailer box 40.Alternatively, it simply may be resting thereon with some kind ofaligning members extending between the two to hold them in position. Thecover is lifted off when it is desired not to cover the box 40.Obviously, the cuts 31 could be made substantially deeper and/or widerand change the configuration substantially. Also, the grooves 30 neednot necessarily extend in a straight line on all four sides and thiscould produce an effect somewhat similar to that illustrated in FIG. 1in the form of the device shown there. In each case, the critical factis the combination of grooves in sandwich panels having at least onepliable face. These grooves extend from the face opposite the pliableface and leave unbroken, at least the pliable face. Bonding material isplaced between all of the various facing members and core members in allof the figures, although not always illustrated.

In summary, the top and side walls of the pick-up cover are formed froma one-piece sandwich construction panel. This panel is fabricated in aflat form and cut and grooved prior to shipment to an erection location.This method of mass manufacturing and mass shipping of cover componentsresults in substantial savings, reduced manufacturing time, less laborand lower transportation costs. The one-piece sandwich panel has agenerally fiat non-pliable rigid inner facing 18, as wood, plywood andthe like. The outer facing 17 is pliable, as sheet metal, aluminum sheetand the like. Located between the facing is an expanded, plastic foamcore 14. The core is identified as a foam polystyrene core. This type ofmaterial offers very low thermo conductivity, resistance to thetransmission of water vapor and absorption of moisture, and resistanceto relatively high static forces without deformation. Polystyrene foamhas good compressive, flectual and sheer strengths. Compressive strengthof polystyrene foam increases with the density of the foam. Apolystyrene foam having a density of 1.5 to 2.5 pounds per cubic foothas a compressive strength of approximately 35 psi. When the density ofthe polystyrene foam is increased to 3.6 to 4.2 pounds per cubic foot,the compressive strength increases to 65 to 130 psi.

In the formation of the cover, the corner sections, as shown in FIG. 2,are bent longitudinally closing the V- grooves 19. The foam plasticmaterial in the corner sections remains bonded to the pliable outerfacing 17 and compresses along the bases of the grooves. The compressionof the polystyrene core increases the strength of the materiallongitudinally along the corner sections of the panel. The core materialin the corner sections is compressed and remains in the corners attachedto the outer facing 17. The compressed core reinforces and insulates thecorners adjacent the bends in the pliable outer facing 17.

The center or roof section 22, as shown in FIG. 1, has an upwardlydirected longitudinal ridge 29 so that the roof section convergesupwardly and outwardly from the opposite corner sections of the cover.The foam plastic core 14, being compressible or yieldable, compresseswhen the outer facing 17 shrinks to a cold temperature and expands whenthe outer facing is subjected to heat. The result is that the core 14follows the outer facing 17 as it moves. The ridge portion or crown 29compensates for temperature changes to keep the roof section at itsdesired shape. If the roof section 22 were flat, it would buckle andshrink down in cold temperatures. With an increase in temperature, theroof section would continue to buckle down and not return to its flatposition. The upwardly directed longitudinal ridge 29 prevents thisbuckling of the roof section.

Referring to FIG. 7, there is shown a pick-up truck, indicated generallyat 41, having a body 42 enclosed with a cover or multi-sided structure,indicated generally at 43. The cover 43 has an upright front wall 44adjacent the cab of the vehicle and a rear wall 46. The rear wall 46 hasa large removable panel 47 carrying a door 48. The panel 47 is a largelift-off panel forming a major part of the back wall. This structure isshown and described in US. Pat. No. 3,496,689. A one-piece multi-sidedsandwich panel, indicated generally at 49, mounted on the walls 46 and47 and truck body 42, closes the top of the body 42.

Referring to FIGS. and l 1, the sandwich panel 49 has an outer pliableand bendable facing or skin 51 of sheet metal, corrugated sheet aluminumor like sheet material, and a plurality of rigid inner facings ormembers 52, 53 and 54, as plywood, hard board or the like. Sandwichedbetween the inner and outer facings is a core 56 of expandedcompressible foam plastic, as expanded compressible foam polystyrene.The polystyrene foam core can be in flat board form. Layers of bondingmaterials 57 and 58 secure or bond the entire outer facing 51 and innerfacings 52, 53 and 54 to the opposite sides of the core 56. The bondingmaterial lay ers 57 and 58 are substantially continuous layers so thatthe entire inside surfaces of the inner and outer facings are firmlysecured to the core 56. Interposed between the opposite edges of thefacings 51, 53 and 51, 54 are longitudinal rails 59 and 61. The bondingmaterial layers 57 and 58 secure the rails 59 and 61 to the facings.Opposite sides of the panel have relatively large rectangular openingsor cutouts 62 and 63 for accommodating windows 65 in the sides of thecover 43.

The inner facings 52 and 53 have adjacent longitudinal parallel edges 64and 66 forming sides of a longitudinal fiat groove or recess 67. Thefacing 62 also has an edge 68 spaced from and substantially parallel tothe edge 69 on the facing 63. A longitudinally spaced flat groove orrecess 71 separates the edges 68 and 69. The facings 52, 53 and 54 canbe bonded to the core 56 in a manner so that the edges 64, 66 and 68, 69are parallel and evenly spaced from each other. These edges can betrimmed in parallel spaced relation with suitable cutting tools so thatthe cover can be formed with uniform straight corners. The entire core56 adjacent the grooves 67 and 71, along with the outer pliable facing,remains whole and continuous so that the sandwich panel is always aone-piece member.

Referring to FIG. 8, the one-piece panel is divided into a center orlongitudinal roof section 72 located between longitudinal side wallsections 73 and 74. The longitudinal corner sections 76 and 77integrally join the roof section 72 with the side wall sections 73 andThe sandwich panel 49, along with the front end wall 44 and the rear endwall 46, is shipped as a unit in a flat condition to the point oferection. The cover is formed by longitudinally bending the cornersections 76 and 77 to form a multisided structure, as shown in FIGS. 7and 8. The pliable outer facing 51 has a substantially uni-- form curvein the corner sections. The core 56A in the corner sections iscompressed with a resultant increase in density of the foam plasticmaterial. The increase in density of the foam plastic material increasesthe strength of the core 56A along the corner sections, For example, apolystyrene foam having a density of 1.5 to 2.5 pounds per cubic foothas a compressive strength of approximately 35 psi. When the density ofthe material is increased to 3.6 to 4.2 pounds per cubic foot, thecompressed strength increases to 65 to psi. The polystyrene used in thisapplication has a normal density of about 1.9 pounds per cubic foot.This density increases to approximately 4 pounds per cubic foot in thecorner sections with a resultant substantial increase in the compressivestrength of the core 56A in the corner sections. In addition to theincrease in strength of the corner sections, the plastic foam core hasinsulating characteristics and resistance to the transmission of watervapor and the absorption of moisture. The bonding in the corner sectionsremains in tact, in that the compressed core 56A is not separated fromthe pliable outer facing 51. This corner section provides the strengthfor maintaining the shape of the roof section 72, as well as preventingsagging of the side wall sections which are weakened by the elongatedopenings 62 and 63.

As shown in FIG. 8, the sandwich panel 49 is mounted on the body 42. Theroof section of the panel has an upwardly directed longitudinal centralridge or crown 78, whereby opposite portions of the roof slope in adownwardly and outwardly direction toward the corners of the cover. Thiscrown 78 compensates for the expansion and contraction of the outerpliable facing 51 due to changes in temperature. The crown 78 "mm m Pmy... u...

prevents the buckling of the roof section when it is subjected tochanges in temperature.

The insides of the corner sections are enclosed with longitudinalarcuate cover plates 79 and 81 attached to the inner facings 52, 54 and52, 53 with fasteners 82, as screws, bolts and the like. The coverplates 79 and 81 can be elongated metal members which fill in the spacebetween the opposite adjacent edges of the facings and thereby cover thecompressed core material 56A. The cover plates also serve to reinforceand add to the strength of the corner sections and provide support forboth the roof section 7 2, as well as the side wall sections 73 and 74of the cover.

While there have been shown and described preferred embodiments of amulti-sided structure, it is understood that various changes in size andnumber of the sections may be made by those skilled in the art withoutdeparting from the invention.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property orprivilege is claimed are defined as follows:

l. A multi-sided cover adapted to be mounted on the body of a truckcomprising: spaced generally upright end walls, a sandwich constructionpanel mounted on the end walls, said panel having generally upright sidewall sections, a generally horizontal roof section, and longitudinallyextended transverse curved corner sections joining the side wallsections with the opposite sides of the roof section, said panel being aone-piece member having a one-piece pliable outer facing, a plurality ofspaced inner rigid facings, rigid longitudinal rail means extendedbetween the outer edge portions of the inner and outer facings of theside wall sections adapted to be connected to a body of a truck, anexpanded compressible plastic foam core, said core being continuous andhaving a substantially uniform thickness and extending between the railmeans, bonding means securing the entire outer facing to one side of thecore, securing the inner facings to the opposite side of the core, andsecuring the rail means to the outer facing and inner facing of the sidewall sections, said inner rigid facings being separated from each otherlongitudinally along the corner sections, said pliable outer facing andcore of the corner sections having longitudinally extended transversecurved portions, said core of the comer sections being compressed andbonded to the curved portions of the pliable facing, the compressed coreof the comer sections having longitudinal continuous transverse curvedsurfaces, cover means having curved surfaces which correspond to thecurved surfaces of the compressed core of the corner sections, and meansattaching the cover means to the inner facings to hold the curvedsurfaces of the cover means in engagement with the curved surfaces ofthe compressed core of the comer sections. facings 2. The cover of claim1 wherein: the plastic foam core is polystyrene foam.

3. The cover of claim 1 wherein: said outer facing is sheet metal, saidinner facings are plywood, and said plastic foam core is polystyrenefoam.

4. The cover of claim 1 wherein: at least one of the sections has anopening to receive a building element different from said panel.

5. The cover of claim 1 wherein: said roof section has an upwardlydirected longitudinal crown whereby the roof section converges upwardlyfrom the corner sections.

6. The cover of claim 1 wherein: the cover means comprise elongatedarcuate cover plates attached to adjacent inner facings to fill in thespace between the opposite adjacent edges of the inner facings and coverthe compressed core along the corner sections of the cover.

1. A multi-sided cover adapted to be mounted on the body of a truckcomprising: spaced generally upright end walls, a sandwich constructionpanel mounted on the end walls, said panel having generally upright sidewall sections, a generally horizontal roof section, and longitudinallyextended transverse curved corner sections joining the side wallsections with the opposite sides of the roof section, said panel being aone-piece member having a one-piece pliable outer facing, a plurality ofspaced inner rigid facings, rigid longitudinal rail means extendedbetween the outer edge portions of the inner and outer facings of theside wall sections adapted to be connected to a body of a truck, anexpanded compressible plastic foam core, said core being continuous andhaving a substantially uniform thickness and extending between the railmeans, bonding means securing the entire outer facing to one side of thecore, securing the inner facings to the opposite side of the core, andsecuring the rail means to the outer facing and inner facing of the sidewall sections, said inner rigid facings being separated from each otherlongitudinally along the corner sections, said pliable outer facing andcore of the corner sections having longitudinally extended transversecurved portions, said core of the corner sections being compressed andbonded to the curved portions of the pliable facing, the compressed coreof the corner sections having longitudinal continuous transverse curvedsurfaces, cover means having curved surfaces which correspond to thecurved surfaces of the compressed core of the corner sections, and meansattaching the cover means to the inner facings to hold the curvedsurfaces of the cover means in engagement with the curved surfaces ofthe compressed core of the corner sections. facings
 2. The cover ofclaim 1 wherein: the plastic foam core is polystyrene foam.
 3. The coverof claim 1 wherein: said outer facing is sheet metal, said inner facingsare plywood, and said plastic foam core is polystyrene foam.
 4. Thecover of claim 1 wherein: at least one of the sections has an opening toreceive a building element different from said panel.
 5. The cover ofclaim 1 wherein: said roof section has an upwardly directed longitudinalcrown whereby the roof section converges upwardly from the cornersections.
 6. The cover of claim 1 wherein: the cover means compriseelongated arcuate cover plates attached to adjacent inner facings tofill in the space between the opposite adjacent edges of the innerfacings and cover the compressed core along the corner sections of thecover.